Foolish
by Chitilada
Summary: Foolish. It was a foolish thing to do, he knew that. But it was the only way. How would he react? Would he be able to understand?
1. Prologue

**INTRODUCTION**

Foolish. It was a foolish thing to do, he knew that. But it was the only way.

How would he react? Would he be able to understand? After everything he has done – no, sacrificed - for Camelot, for everyone, he deserved a bit of trust in return, didn't he?

Merlin cursed as his foot hit a root which nearly caused him to sprawl to the ground, regaining his footing just in time. "Clumsy and foolish, the two most accurate adjectives to describe the greatest warlock ever to walk the earth…" he thought bitterly and turned his attention back to the path, barely recognisable in the pale moonlight, before him.

He had already traveled the whole night, heading east away from Camelot with only the cold as his constant companion. He tugged his brown leather jacket tighter around him and fastened his pace a little to keep the shivering at bay. "It will be worth it…. It will be worth it" he kept repeating in his head. Even if the hardest part was yet to come, it calmed him to think that everything would turn out well in the end.

"Have you lost your mind?" he recalled Gaius responding to his plan the day before. "You can't be serious about this!" Merlin was serious. Dead serious. "Do you have any idea what could happen if Arthur doesn't react the way you want him to?"

"It's the only way, Gaius" he had defended his intentions.

"I cannot go on living like that anymore. The longer I hide who I am the sooner I will become a person that I am not. I don't expect you to understand, really, I can't expect that from anyone, but I just need you to trust me with this. And Arthur's ready, I can feel it." The old physician had let out a small sigh. "Merlin, I trust you with my life, you know that. But is faking your own kidnapping really the only way?! Think about it, this is just foolish."

Now that word definitely got a whole other dimension.

Yet, Merlin did not care. Sometimes things require silly decisions, even if his own was quite a grave one. He had the whole destiny of Albion resting on his shoulders, which for Merlin was another reason to at last free himself of the burden of hiding his true identity. His longing to finally be free, to be who he was born to be, had grown unbearable over the past few months. Under the reign of King Arthur and his wife Guinevere Camelot was enjoying a time of peace and prosperity, obtained by numeral treaties with neighbouring kingdoms. There have been no hostile attacks in months, neither from enemy soldiers nor bandits striving through Camelot's woods. In brief, all was well. Except for Merlin who still had to keep his biggest secret: his magic.

And after five years of hiding, he was tired of it.

So he had made a plan.

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A/N: Do you want me to continue? This idea came to me in a dream, how silly that may sound :D

Please keep in mind that English is not my first language so there might be a chance that you'll find mistakes in my chapters. If so, please tell me in your reviews so I can correct them :)


	2. The Plan

**A/N: Thank you so much for your reviews and thanks to all who are following my story. It means a lot to me :)**

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**Chapter One: The Plan**

He would tell only a few selected people. Arthur, of course, Gwaine, who after Lancelot's death had become his second closest friend, and Sir Leon. It's not that he didn't trust Gwen enough to let her in on his secret but he knew Arthur. The King would never let her go with him when there was the slightest chance that she would put herself in danger, so he had to rule her out from the beginning. She and the other knights would learn the truth soon enough, anyway. But how was he supposed to get those three to a place where there would be no one to disturb them? Where Merlin could tell them the whole truth about him and his destiny, far away from Camelot, where titles did not mean anything and where they could meet as equals?

Merlin hoped that if he showed them how magic was woven into the very fabric of the world, how it was part of every plant and animal, they would understand - understand him and in the end accept him for who he was. It was wishful thinking, Merlin knew that. Nevertheless, he had chosen a clearing a few miles east from Camelot with a small stone circle in the centre of it, a memorial put up by druids over hundreds of years ago when they were still allowed to practice the Old Religion freely. It was a sacred place full of ancient magical powers and that was exactly where Merlin wanted his big reveal to take place. But first, he needed Arthur, Leon and Gwaine to go to this place. That was where his plan fitted in.

Truth be told, it was none of his best plans and it was also slightly macabre, he had to admit, yet it would be effective and that was the only thing Merlin cared about at the moment.

Before he had left Camelot he had given Gaius a letter and asked him to pretend to have found it in his chambers. He should then hand it straight to the King of Camelot.

_"Dear Your Highness,_

_You might already have noticed the absence of a certain manservant. Fear not, he's fine. For now!_

_If you want it to stay that way, meet us at the Sceadu stones at dawn tomorrow. You're only allowed to bring two of your men and no weapons! _

_Don't keep to these rules and you will never see Merlin again!"_

Admittedly, it was a bit rude to scare Arthur like that but that way Merlin could be sure that Arthur would actually turn up and then he would have all the time in the world to make the young King change his attitude towards magic. That was, of course, easier said than done. But he would try, even if it was the last thing he did.

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Once Arthur had finished reading the letter in his hands his face fell. Wordlessly he handed it to his wife, who immediately started skimming the writing as well, then turned away so that no one could see how the news of his best friend's kidnapping worried him. A muffled gasp signaled him that Gwen now knew what this all was about, so he took her into his arms and gently stroked her head. He knew how much Merlin meant to her. They have been friends since the first day Merlin arrived in Camelot. After her father's death and the loss of Morgana as her friend, Arthur was not sure if she could bear to lose yet another friend. No, he would not let it come to that!

"What are you going to do?" Gwen asked after she had regained her composure.

Arthur only gave her a small, reassuring smile and addressed one of the servants, waiting patiently near the door.

"Please inform Sir Leon and Sir Gwaine to have their horses readied. We will ride out at nightfall."

With that the servant hurried out of the room, leaving the King and Queen with Gaius behind.

"How can that be?" Arthur said more to himself. "Why Merlin?" He then threw a questioning look at Gaius as if he could provide an answer to that. "What do they want with him?"

"I…I don't know, Sire. I wish I knew!" he said quickly, avoiding looking directly into Arthur's eyes the whole time.

'Gods, why did you have to put me into this position, Merlin?' The old man hated lying to his King, even for Merlin. He had told his ward that he did not approve of his plan and that the end did not justify the means, but what other choice did he have than to play along?

The King nodded, knowing that he would find out the reason soon enough anyway. He just hoped that Merlin would be all right till the next morning.

"I promise you," the King said to both Gwen and Gaius, "I'll bring him home."

'Merlin, I will not let you down!'

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**A/N: Please let me know what you think and how you're liking it so far. I promise the next chapters will be a bit longer, but I just wanted to post this as a chapter on its own.**


	3. The Stranger

**A/N: Hi guys, thank you sooo much for all your lovely reviews 3 I really appreciate it! I am so sorry for this belated update, but I'm really busy at the moment with preparing for uni and packing all my things to move to my adopted country :)**

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Chapter 2: The Stranger

The sun had already set behind the horizon and the air began to rapidly cool down as King Arthur and his two trusted knights left the white towers of Camelot behind them. No one said much as they rode through the night, not that Arthur would complain about that, he was glad not to be forced into any kind of small talk. He also believed that if he said too much, his friends would notice how concerned he truly was and it was not fit for a King to show a weakness like worry, even if it was about his best friend. So they continued their silent journey, everyone keeping to their own thoughts.

After a while Arthur could not help but think how weird this whole situation actually was, recalling his last conversation with Guinevere before they left:

"Don't you think it's odd that the kidnappers didn't demand anything for ransom? All they requested is your presence." The King had to admit, something felt definitely off about that. Why else would someone abduct his servant if not to demand a high amount of money for his release? Either these kidnappers were just plain stupid or there was more to it. It all just didn't make any sense…

"Just promise me, you'll be careful" Gwen had said after Arthur had pulled her into a final embrace.

"I promise. And I can also promise you that I won't return without him!" He had then given her an encouraging smile, at least he hoped that it looked encouraging, and left the room, determined to bring Merlin back to Camelot; safe and sound.

"So what do we do now?" Gwaine finally asked. "We wait." The King stated. It wasn't yet dawn, but they had reached their destination earlier than anticipated. The Sceadu stones were right in front of them, standing there like giant shadows in the middle of the small clearing.

'Well' Arthur thought 'at least it gives us some time to explore the place a bit.'

He had already decided not to like that place. Just being there made the young King feel more than uncomfortable. He could not describe what it was; it seemed as if some kind of energy radiated from the stones and the longer they were near them the more grew the sensation inside of him that they were not welcome there. And the faces of his fellow knights showed him that he was not the only one who felt that way.

Yet, they shoved their worries aside and began taking a look around the meeting point, but there was not much to explore really. The clearing was surrounded by closely positioned trees and scrubs which would conceal anyone approaching the place. That meant, the kidnappers could enter the clearing from any direction and there was no chance for Arthur and his knights to be prepared for them before they actually arrived there.

"I have a bad feeling about this…" Leon stated, once the three met up again. It was not like Leon to express his worries openly since he normally kept his thoughts to himself most of the time and always maintained a cool head.

Gwaine almost wanted to reply "Me, too." but stopped himself before the words could slip over his tongue. What reason was there to say it out loud when he already knew that they all agreed on that? Merlin was their friend and he was in danger, all they wanted was to get him home safely. The fact that they did not know anything about his kidnappers and did not have anything with them to ransom their friend back, made the situation even worse.

'They better not have hurt him!' Gwaine thought.

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They stayed a few metres away from the clearing on a small rise, from where they had a good view of the stone circle, and waited. Although the night was nearly over, the cold was almost unbearable and the King once again cursed his chainmail, which made him feel even colder. Normally he could have coped with a cold night, but not when concern for his servant added to his misery.

They had become true friends over the past five years and he could not imagine not having Merlin by his side, giving his advice on all decisions the King had to make. He also was the most loyal person Arthur had ever met and probably would ever meet. He knew that Merlin would never let him down, as he had proven enough times already, and now it was Arthur's chance to return the favour.

Against his intention to stay awake, Arthur finally felt his eyes become heavier with every second and he fell into a restless slumber.

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His short-lived sleep was interrupted by someone shaking him by the shoulders.

"Someone's coming." Gwaine hissed and Arthur immediately shot up. How long had he been asleep? The sun had already arisen, bathing the forest in a warm light. Now he would face Merlin's kidnappers…

He glanced at the Sceadu stones, then he saw them…, no, him! A tall man was moving towards the centre of the clearing, looking to all sides as if waiting for someone.

Truth be told, Arthur had been expecting something else. A group of bandits most probably but not one single man. And there was no sight of Merlin either.

The man standing there seemed to be in his mid fourties, had a tall, lanky frame and brown hair. He seemed not in the least dangerous, but looks could be deceiving, Arthur knew that. So he would not dare letting his guard down while he was slowly approaching the stranger.

He felt naked without his sword – they had left their weapons with the horses – but the King knew he had to abide by the kidnappers rules if he did not want to put Merlin's life in jeopardy. He consoled himself with the knowledge that if it did come to a fight he would still have his dagger, well hidden in his left boot.

The man had already taken notice of the King and his knights and waited patiently for them to come closer, no facial expression revealing his intentions. Before the stranger could even begin to say something, Arthur beat him to it:

"Where is he? What have you done with him?"

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**A/N: Do you want me to continue? Please tell me what you think about this chapter, reviews always make my day :) Again please keep in mind that English isn't my first language...**


	4. The Magical Centre

**A/N: Hi there :) I'm sorry for this update being really late! I had so many things on my mind these last few days that I just didn't get to continue this story. But now I have and I just hope you will enjoy reading it :)**

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**Chapter 3: The Magical Centre**

Merlin could feel his heart pounding fiercely in his chest. There was no going back now! But was he really doing the right thing? How would Arthur react? What if he did not accept him for who he really was?

Hundreds of questions were running through Merlin's mind as he saw the King, Gwaine and Leon approaching him. He knew Arthur would choose those two to come with him. Leon had been in his service the longest of all his most trusted knights and represented everything a knight of Camelot stood for and Gwaine, well… it was no secret that he and Merlin had become close friends over the past two years and if Merlin's life was at risk, nothing would stop him from coming with Arthur anyway.

Merlin had been thinking a long time about how their meeting should take place. First he had thought about using the aging spell again, but had dismissed this plan immediately, since Arthur definitely would not react well to seeing the supposed murderer of his father again. He needed an appearance that was unknown to the King, one that looked likeable and trustworthy. It had taken him a while to find the right person he wanted to resemble and in the end his choice had fallen on a farmer, Merlin had grown to like as a child. He probably had been the only person in Ealdor, apart from his mother and Will, who had not treated him like a misfit. Yes, he was definitely a good choice.

Even though Merlin had not used this spell in a long time, it still had worked straight away and now he looked exactly like that farmer from his village.

Once the three of them were close enough he readied himself but before he could even begin to say something, the King beat him to it.

"Where is he? What have you done with him?" he snarled.

Merlin had never seen Arthur this furious before and at the same time this… afraid. Truth be told, he actually felt sorry for him.

Here they were again, the self-doubts, nagging and clawing at him, making every of his decisions even harder than they already were. Merlin was almost on the brink of backing down from his plan, but he stopped himself at the last moment. No, he could not risk everything like that now, not when there was so much a stake. He just hoped that one day Arthur would understand why Merlin was doing what he did and be able to forgive him. And if not, then Arthur was not the friend, he had hoped he was.

The young warlock composed himself, before he finally began to speak:

"He is not here. I can assure you, however, that no harm has come to him."

Merlin had tried to make his voice sound as steady as possible, but his answer did not really seem to satisfy them so he kept on talking before someone could interrupt him.

"There is something I want to discuss with you before I will take you to him. You might have already wondered why there was no ransom demand at all?"

He did not wait for them to answer but continued straight away. "It is because it is not money that I seek from you."

The knights and Arthur exchanged astonished looks. What else could this stranger want from them if not money? It just did not make any sense…

"All you have to do is listen to what I will tell you!" Whatever little patience Gwaine had seemed to have, it was gone now.

"We don't have time for this! Take us to Merlin, now!" The young warlock just shook his head. "I'm sorry, I won't do that."

"Well, then I might as well kill you where you stand!" Gwaine growled and before Merlin knew it something hard and cold pressed against his neck. Great, apparently it was not only Arthur who always carried a hidden dagger with him, to say nothing of the fact that they carelessly had put Merlin's life on the line by bringing weapons.

"Do that and you will see Merlin never again." It was not even a lie…

"Listen to me first! And all your questions will be answered!" he tried again, this time more forcefully.

Gwaine looked at Arthur for a second, who nodded in return, and put the dagger away again. Yet, the suspicion was still clearly visible in his face.

Merlin finally dared to breathe again.

"Fine. Go on then, what is it you have to say?"

'All right, this is it. Just don't lose your head now', the young warlock cautioned himself.

He then waited a few moments until his heartbeat went back to its normal pace and took a few more deep breaths, before he felt confident enough to begin with his story.

"Do you know where you are, my lords?" Merlin asked. They all nodded, Arthur and Gwaine felt no need to answer the question but Leon did.

"At the Sceadu stones. They were once erected by some druids living in this area."

"That is correct, but it is only half of the truth." He paused for effect.

"A long time ago, this stone circle was a place for prayer. The druids would come here to pray for their deceased and even to communicate with them. However, that was when the druids were still allowed to practice their abilities freely. But, as you already know, this changed very quickly. The more the other people learned about magic and what it could do, the more they feared it. They started to hate it and everyone who was capable of using its power."

Arthur stiffened at the word 'magic'. He did not like where this was going. Merlin noticed his uneasiness but continued with his story nevertheless.

"Eventually, magic was banned from the land and from then on, the druids and all other magic-users had to hide their abilities. But that did not keep them from coming here. Since the villagers around here had always avoided this clearing, in fear of it of being haunted, it was the perfect place for the druids to continue practicing the Old Religion. It became their centre of magic."

Merlin expectantly looked at the three men in front of him. Arthur's face had turned into a stony mask.

"And now everything you see here in this clearing, every plant, every animal, even the air you breathe is still part of this magical centre."

Arthur saw the stranger suddenly raising his arms up to the sky and speaking words in a language that he could not understand. Once the words were said the King felt the earth beneath his feet starting to vibrate, catching him completely off guard and almost causing him to lose his balance. He watched in horror as the sky began to darken and a wall of dark clouds began moving towards them. Fearful, they backed away.

Merlin could feel the magic of this place now running through him like a stream. Now they had to feel its power too. They just had to!

Suddenly Merlin's world exploded in searing pain and his vision started to blur before he knew no more.

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The first thing Merlin was aware of was the pain shooting from his head down his entire spine. It made him feel dizzy and he had to take a few breaths before he felt ready to even attempt to open his eyes. Once he did, his vision started spinning and he immediately shut them again with a groan.

'God, what happened?' Merlin could not recall anything… where was he? And why did his head feel like it had been hit by a horse? He tried to raise his hand to his head to feel for a lump or anything that would explain his headaches, when he found that he couldn't! He couldn't move! Something was keeping him from moving. He was trapped! That was enough for Merlin to start panicking.

He had to get away! Somehow! He didn't care how! Arthur! Where was Arthur? ….

Why was no one helping him?!

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**A/N: If you enjoyed this chapter then please leave me a review and if you didn't then just let me know what you didn't like about it ;) Every criticism is highly appreciated :) **


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